Johjst blakely



A' 'FUNiTED STATES Parent keine.

JOHN BLAKELY, OF BROOKLYN, NEV YORK. I

KNOCKDOWN BOX.

SPECIFICATION vforming part of Letters Patent N0. 291,281, dated January 1, 1884;

Application filed November 1t', V83. (Yo modtl.)

@ZZ whom, it may concern,.- Be it known that l', JOHN BLAKELY, a citi;

' zen of the United States, residing in the city of Brooklyn, county of Kings, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Knockdown Boxes,fully described and represented in the following speciiication and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of t-he same.

The present invention relates to what are known as knockdown boxes-that is to say, that class of boxes which are capable of being bent into a flat form for storage or shipment and again restored to box form when required for use.

" It is the object of the invention to provide a simple and inexpensive box of this character which shall be especially adapted for use in sending samples of merchandise through the mails, for which purpose a box or package is required which can be closed so as to securely hold the contents and yet be capable vof being opened and reclosed as often as .may be desired to permit an inspection of the eontents by the post-office oifieials.

To these ends the invention consists in a knockdown box having thepeculiarities of eonstruction which will be hereinafter fully explained and particularly pointed out.

a plan view of the blank from which-the box is made; Fig. 2, a perspective view of the box with one of its ends closed ancLthe other open; Fig. 3, a like view of the box, showing one of its ends closed and the other partially closed; Fig. 4, a cross-section taken upon the line e e of Fig. 3; Fig. 5, a -partial section, upon an enlarged scale, taken upon the line ai ofthe same rigure, the parts beinginposition to entirely close the end ofthe box; and Fig. 6, a like View taken upon the li'ne 'u o of the same figure, the parts being in the same position as :in Fig. 4.

Referring to Fig. l, it will be seen that the boxis made from a single sheetor blank, which is of rectangular form, and is provided upon one side with a ilap,2, and upon two op' posite sides with tongues 3. The blank thus formed is provided with cuts a b c', extending inward from two of its sides, so as to form the endclosing portions 5 6 7 8 n pon opposite sides of the blank, and is creased, scored, or

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is indented upon the lines g y, 71. lz, iz', t 7;, gm,

and gn, so as to define the lines of fold -be'- tween the side and edge forming portions 9 10 11.12, and between these portions and the end-forming portions 5 6 7 8. The blank is also provided upon the lines g h, which form the fold-lines between the end-forming portions 5 and the side-forming portion 9, with cuts r, which are of a length about equal to the width of the tongues 3, and are adapted to receive said tongues when the box is closed. The tongues 3, it will be observed,extend from the end-forming portions 7 ,which are attached to the opposite side-forming portion 10 of the box, so that when the parts are folded down in the act of closing the box these tongues are in proper position to enter the cutsr and lock the ends of the box. In forming the box the blank is first folded upon the lines g g, i 71, t' t', and It' k, so as to assume the tubular form shown in Fig. 2, and cause the iiap 2 and edge-forming portion 12 te overlap cach other, as shownr in Fig. et, after which the parts 2 12 are cemented or otherwise secured to each other. Then the box is in this condition, it can be knocked down77 for storage or shipment by simply pressing either two of its diagonally opposite corners inward, so as to cause one oi' the side and one of the edge forming portions to lie ilat upon the opposite side and edge forming portions. \Vhen the box is re'- quired for use, all that is necessary is to reL store it to the tubular form, as shown in Fig. 2, insert the eontents,and close the ends. This last is acomplished by folding the parts 6 8 inward, so that their ends will lie adjacent to each other, as shown in Fig. 5, then folding the parts 5 over onto the parts 6 8, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, and,nally,iblding the parts 7 over onto the parts 5, and inserting the locking-tongues 3 into the cuts r, asshown in Figs. 3 and 5. By this means the ends of the box are securely closed without cementng or otherwise permanently fastening the parts together, so that by simply withdrawing one or both of the tongues 3 and raising the parts 5 6 7 8 the contents of the box can be inspected from one or both ends and the box reclosed as often as may be desired, thus making the box especially well adapted for use in transporting samples of merchandise through the mails.

What I claim is- IOO The herein-described knoekdown box, oon- In testimony whereot` I have hereunto set sisting of a tubular body provided iitits ends iny hand in the presence of two subscribing 1o with closing` portions 5 6 7 S, one of said porwitnesses.

tions being` provided with .ai loeiiingiongue, I JOHN Thun-LY as o, and the opposite portion w 1th :L out, :is g

1', located upon the fold-linebetween said por- \\"iines:'-.es:

ion and ihe bodv ofthe box, Substantially :is: i T17. H. Runnin,

described. XVM'. A. S'IEVBNH. 

